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117-747: In ancient Rome , the Ager Vaticanus ( [ˈa.ɡɛr waː.t̪iːˈkaː.n̪ʊs] , "Vatican Field") was the alluvial plain on the right (west) bank of the Tiber . It was also called Ripa Veientana or Ripa Etrusca , indicating the Etruscan dominion during the archaic period. It was located between the Janiculum , the Vatican Hill , and Monte Mario , down to the Aventine Hill and up to

234-626: A classical republic and then to an increasingly autocratic military dictatorship during the Empire. Ancient Rome is often grouped into classical antiquity together with ancient Greece , and their similar cultures and societies are known as the Greco-Roman world . Ancient Roman civilisation has contributed to modern language, religion, society, technology, law, politics, government, warfare, art, literature, architecture, and engineering. Rome professionalised and expanded its military and created

351-738: A Gallic army under the leadership of tribal chieftain Brennus , defeated the Romans at the Battle of the Allia and marched to Rome. The Gauls looted and burned the city, then laid siege to the Capitoline Hill, where some Romans had barricaded themselves, for seven months. The Gauls then agreed to give the Romans peace in exchange for 1000 pounds of gold. According to later legend, the Roman supervising

468-406: A Republic. Augustus ( r.  27 BC – AD 14 ) gathered almost all the republican powers under his official title, princeps , and diminished the political influence of the senatorial class by boosting the equestrian class . The senators lost their right to rule certain provinces, like Egypt, since the governor of that province was directly nominated by the emperor. The creation of

585-507: A banquet for its notable citizens, after which his soldiers killed all the guests. From the security of the temple of Sarapis, he then directed an indiscriminate slaughter of Alexandria's people. In 212, he issued the Edict of Caracalla , giving full Roman citizenship to all free men living in the Empire, with the exception of the dediticii , people who had become subject to Rome through surrender in war, and freed slaves. Mary Beard points to

702-616: A child; Aulus Gellius on his part derives the name from vāticinium , a prophecy elicited by the flight of the birds or from the study of the liver of the victims of sacrifices and inspired by the god who controlled the area: the science of the Vaticini , the aruspicina or Etrusca Disciplina , had been introduced in Rome by the Etruscans. This term was ultimately derived from vātēs (“soothsayer, prophet”) and canō (“to sing”). During

819-722: A combination of treaties and military strength. It eventually controlled the Italian Peninsula, assimilating the Greek culture of southern Italy ( Magna Grecia ) and the Etruscan culture, and then became the dominant power in the Mediterranean region and parts of Europe. At its height it controlled the North African coast, Egypt , Southern Europe, and most of Western Europe, the Balkans , Crimea , and much of

936-518: A doll with jointed arms. This find, occurred in 1889, aroused much public emotion. The most recent discovery in this field (which occurred in 2003 but was published only in 2006) is that of the large necropolis known as Santa Rosa's, along the via Triumphalis , which came to light during the excavation of the Vatican car park under the Janiculum hill. The latter site is not isolated, but constitutes

1053-432: A free path to reestablish his own power. In 83 BC he made his second march on Rome and began a time of terror: thousands of nobles, knights and senators were executed. Sulla held two dictatorships and one more consulship, which began the crisis and decline of Roman Republic. In the mid-1st century BC, Roman politics were restless. Political divisions in Rome split into one of two groups, populares (who hoped for

1170-672: A half century after these events, Carthage was left humiliated and the Republic's focus was now directed towards the Hellenistic kingdoms of Greece and revolts in Hispania . However, Carthage, having paid the war indemnity, felt that its commitments and submission to Rome had ceased, a vision not shared by the Roman Senate . The Third Punic War began when Rome declared war against Carthage in 149 BC. Carthage resisted well at

1287-516: A hundred days. These games included gladiatorial combats , horse races and a sensational mock naval battle on the flooded grounds of the Colosseum. Titus died of fever in 81 AD, and was succeeded by his brother Domitian . As emperor, Domitian showed the characteristics of a tyrant . He ruled for fifteen years, during which time he acquired a reputation for self-promotion as a living god. He constructed at least two temples in honour of Jupiter,

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1404-628: A large proletariat often of impoverished farmers. The latter groups supported the Catilinarian conspiracy —a resounding failure since the consul Marcus Tullius Cicero quickly arrested and executed the main leaders. Gaius Julius Caesar reconciled the two most powerful men in Rome: Marcus Licinius Crassus , who had financed much of his earlier career, and Crassus' rival, Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (anglicised as Pompey), to whom he married his daughter . He formed them into

1521-538: A long time to reach the north west coast, and in 60 AD he finally crossed the Menai Strait to the sacred island of Mona ( Anglesey ), the last stronghold of the druids . His soldiers attacked the island and massacred the druids: men, women and children, destroyed the shrine and the sacred groves and threw many of the sacred standing stones into the sea. While Paulinus and his troops were massacring druids in Mona,

1638-710: A military leader to defeat the Cimbri and the Teutones , who were threatening Rome. After Marius's retirement, Rome had a brief peace, during which the Italian socii ("allies" in Latin) requested Roman citizenship and voting rights. The reformist Marcus Livius Drusus supported their legal process but was assassinated, and the socii revolted against the Romans in the Social War . At one point both consuls were killed; Marius

1755-658: A new informal alliance including himself, the First Triumvirate ("three men"). Caesar's daughter died in childbirth in 54 BC, and in 53 BC, Crassus invaded Parthia and was killed in the Battle of Carrhae ; the Triumvirate disintegrated. Caesar conquered Gaul , obtained immense wealth, respect in Rome and the loyalty of battle-hardened legions. He became a threat to Pompey and was loathed by many optimates . Confident that Caesar could be stopped by legal means, Pompey's party tried to strip Caesar of his legions,

1872-519: A pair of tribunes who attempted to pass land reform legislation that would redistribute the major patrician landholdings among the plebeians. Both brothers were killed and the Senate passed reforms reversing the Gracchi brother's actions. This led to the growing divide of the plebeian groups ( populares ) and equestrian classes ( optimates ). Gaius Marius soon become a leader of the Republic, holding

1989-510: A part of a vast burial ground which had been already discovered and explored in the 1950s, called "dell'Autoparco". In one of these very modest sepulchres, the body of Saint Peter was handed down after his crucifixion under Nero. When Constantine legitimized the Christian cult with his Edict of Milan and began his Christian public building program with the Lateran , he didn't do so in

2106-538: A period of turbulence. Archaeological evidence implies some degree of large-scale warfare. According to tradition and later writers such as Livy , the Roman Republic was established c.  509 BC , when the last of the seven kings of Rome, Tarquin the Proud , was deposed and a system based on annually elected magistrates and various representative assemblies was established. A constitution set

2223-580: A prelude to Caesar's trial, impoverishment, and exile. To avoid this fate, Caesar crossed the Rubicon River and invaded Rome in 49 BC. The Battle of Pharsalus was a brilliant victory for Caesar and in this and other campaigns, he destroyed all of the optimates leaders: Metellus Scipio , Cato the Younger , and Pompey's son, Gnaeus Pompeius . Pompey was murdered in Egypt in 48 BC. Caesar

2340-619: A revolt in Mauretania and the Bar Kokhba revolt in Judea. This was the last large-scale Jewish revolt against the Romans, and was suppressed with massive repercussions in Judea. Hundreds of thousands of Jews were killed. Hadrian renamed the province of Judea " Provincia Syria Palaestina ", after one of Judea's most hated enemies. He constructed fortifications and walls, like the celebrated Hadrian's Wall which separated Roman Britannia and

2457-458: A rich Arabian city. Severus killed his legate, who was gaining respect from the legions; and his soldiers fell victim to famine. After this disastrous campaign, he withdrew. Severus also intended to vanquish the whole of Britannia. To achieve this, he waged war against the Caledonians . After many casualties in the army due to the terrain and the barbarians' ambushes, Severus himself went to

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2574-646: A sea voyage to found a new Troy after the Trojan War . They landed on the banks of the Tiber River and a woman travelling with them, Roma, torched their ships to prevent them leaving again. They named the settlement after her. The Roman poet Virgil recounted this legend in his classical epic poem the Aeneid , where the Trojan prince Aeneas is destined to found a new Troy. Literary and archaeological evidence

2691-675: A series of checks and balances , and a separation of powers . The most important magistrates were the two consuls , who together exercised executive authority such as imperium , or military command. The consuls had to work with the Senate , which was initially an advisory council of the ranking nobility, or patricians , but grew in size and power. Other magistrates of the Republic include tribunes , quaestors , aediles , praetors and censors . The magistracies were originally restricted to patricians , but were later opened to common people, or plebeians . Republican voting assemblies included

2808-697: A statue of Apollo and the temple of Divus Claudius ("the deified Claudius"), both initiated by Nero. Buildings destroyed by the Great Fire of Rome were rebuilt, and he revitalised the Capitol . Vespasian started the construction of the Flavian Amphitheater, commonly known as the Colosseum . The historians Josephus and Pliny the Elder wrote their works during Vespasian's reign. Vespasian

2925-546: A system of government called res publica , the inspiration for modern republics such as the United States and France . It achieved impressive technological and architectural feats, such as the empire-wide construction of aqueducts and roads , as well as more grandiose monuments and facilities. Archaeological evidence of settlement around Rome starts to emerge c.  1000 BC . Large-scale organisation appears only c.  800 BC , with

3042-497: A territory of some 780 square kilometres (300 square miles) with a population perhaps as high as 35,000. A palace, the Regia , was constructed c.  625 BC ; the Romans attributed the creation of their first popular organisations and the Senate to the regal period as well. Rome also started to extend its control over its Latin neighbours. While later Roman stories like the Aeneid asserted that all Latins descended from

3159-547: Is a marble plaque to his memory on the wall of the apartment building), and went to a Catholic private school in the neighborhood. Ennio Morricone , the film music composer, went to the same school, and for one year was in the same class as Sergio Leone. The rione is on the west bank of the River Tiber , south of Vatican City , in the plain between the meander of the river and the Janiculum Hill. In addition to

3276-448: Is clear on there having been kings in Rome, attested in fragmentary 6th century BC texts. Long after the abolition of the Roman monarchy, a vestigial rex sacrorum was retained to exercise the monarch's former priestly functions. The Romans believed that their monarchy was elective, with seven legendary kings who were largely unrelated by blood. Evidence of Roman expansion is clear in the sixth century BC; by its end, Rome controlled

3393-682: Is consensus that the former, so called because of the triumphs of the Roman armies coming back from Veii , started in the Campus Martius , crossed the Tiber on the Pons Neronianus , heading north in direction Monte Mario and then flowing into the via Cassia ; About the Cornelia' s path there are several hypotheses: until the 1940s was a common opinion that the road branched from

3510-507: Is usually taken by historians as the beginning of Roman Empire. Officially, the government was republican, but Augustus assumed absolute powers. His reform of the government brought about a two-century period colloquially referred to by Romans as the Pax Romana . The Julio-Claudian dynasty was established by Augustus . The emperors of this dynasty were Augustus, Tiberius , Caligula , Claudius and Nero . The Julio-Claudians started

3627-637: The Historia Augusta give many accounts of his notorious extravagance. Elagabalus adopted his cousin Severus Alexander , as Caesar, but subsequently grew jealous and attempted to assassinate him. However, the Praetorian guard preferred Alexander, murdered Elagabalus, dragged his mutilated corpse through the streets of Rome, and threw it into the Tiber. Severus Alexander then succeeded him. Alexander waged war against many foes, including

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3744-782: The Horti Caesaris ). The regio included two of the most ancient churches in Rome, the Titulus Callixti , later called the Basilica di Santa Maria in Trastevere , and the Titulus Cecilae , Santa Cecilia in Trastevere . In order to have a stronghold on the right Bank and to control the Gianicolo hill, Transtiberim was partially included by Emperor Aurelian (270–275) inside the wall erected to defend

3861-519: The comitia centuriata (centuriate assembly), which voted on matters of war and peace and elected men to the most important offices, and the comitia tributa (tribal assembly), which elected less important offices. In the 4th century BC, Rome had come under attack by the Gauls , who now extended their power in the Italian peninsula beyond the Po Valley and through Etruria. On 16 July 390 BC,

3978-633: The via Triumphalis towards Veii and the via Aurelia nova made possible for the families of the aristocracy the construction of luxurious private suburban residences ( Horti ). Excavations carried out in various periods in the area that stretches from Santo Spirito in Sassia to the Palazzaccio have brought to light traces of 1st and 2nd century buildings, pertinent to the Horti Agrippinae ("Agrippina's gardens"), belonging to Agrippina

4095-664: The Horti were inherited by Nero , who used both to lodge the Romans damaged by the great fire of 64, and to carry out the executions of the Christians accused of the fire itself. Because of that, until the end of the Middle Ages the popular name of the area beyond the Tiber north of Trastevere remained Prata Neronis ("Nero's meadows"). The neighboring Horti Domitiae ("Domitia's gardens"), owned either by Domitian 's wife, Domitia Longina , or by Nero's aunt, Domitia Lepida

4212-665: The Praetorian Guard and his reforms in the military, creating a standing army with a fixed size of 28 legions, ensured his total control over the army. Compared with the Second Triumvirate's epoch, Augustus' reign as princeps was very peaceful, which led the people and the nobles of Rome to support Augustus, increasing his strength in political affairs. His generals were responsible for the field command, gaining such commanders as Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa , Nero Claudius Drusus and Germanicus much respect from

4329-649: The Roman naming conventions ) tried to align himself with the Caesarian faction. In 43 BC, along with Antony and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus , Caesar's best friend, he legally established the Second Triumvirate . Upon its formation, 130–300 senators were executed, and their property was confiscated, due to their supposed support for the Liberatores . In 42 BC, the Senate deified Caesar as Divus Iulius ; Octavian thus became Divi filius ,

4446-599: The Triumphalis at a short distance from the bridge of Nero, running in east-west direction. According to this hypothesis, the Christians condemned to death by Nero would have walked across this road while going to their martyrdom in the Circus of the emperor. However, since during the excavations in Borgo during the 1940s for the building of Via della Conciliazione no sign of the road was found, now many scholars think that

4563-461: The Vatican Hill , today's St. Peter's Square , and possibly today's Via della Conciliazione . The Ager Vaticanus lowland was exposed to the periodic floods of the Tiber, hosted vegetable gardens and vineyards, and was known for its unhealthy climate and bad wine until the end of the first century BC, when the development of local roads along the Via Cornelia (towards the port of Caere ),

4680-457: The collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC), the Roman Republic (509–27 BC), and the Roman Empire (27 BC–476 AD) until the fall of the western empire. Ancient Rome began as an Italic settlement, traditionally dated to 753 BC, beside the River Tiber in the Italian Peninsula . The settlement grew into the city and polity of Rome, and came to control its neighbours through

4797-405: The via Cornelia started from Ponte Milvio and – running along the right bank of the Tiber – reached Hadrian's Mausoleum crossing the via Triumphalis in a place corresponding to the destroyed Piazza Scossacavalli in Borgo. A third road, the via Aurelia nova , started from the Pons Aelius running southwest until today's Porta San Pancrazio . The Ager Vaticanus always remained outside

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4914-491: The walls of Rome and the pomerium . According to Roman tradition, therefore, necropolises and sepulchers also settled along the streets that crossed it, and were normally left in place until the need arose to demolish them to make room for new buildings (like the Basilica of Saint Peter ), or to recover materials. This was the fate of the so-called Meta Romuli (the other funerary pyramid existing in Rome in addition to that of Gaius Cestius outside Porta San Paolo ) and

5031-592: The "five good emperors" Nerva , Trajan , Hadrian , Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius . Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius were part of Italic families settled in Roman colonies outside of Italy: the families of Trajan and Hadrian had settled in Italica ( Hispania Baetica ), that of Antoninus Pius in Colonia Agusta Nemausensis ( Gallia Narbonensis ), and that of Marcus Aurelius in Colonia Claritas Iulia Ucubi (Hispania Baetica). The Nerva-Antonine dynasty came to an end with Commodus , son of Marcus Aurelius. Nerva abdicated and died in 98 AD, and

5148-536: The 2nd century BC, the Romans became the dominant people of the Mediterranean Sea . The conquest of the Hellenistic kingdoms brought the Roman and Greek cultures in closer contact and the Roman elite, once rural, became cosmopolitan. At this time Rome was a consolidated empire—in the military view—and had no major enemies. Foreign dominance led to internal strife. Senators became rich at the provinces ' expense; soldiers, who were mostly small-scale farmers, were away from home longer and could not maintain their land; and

5265-453: The American Pratt Institute School of Architecture therefore serving as home to an international student body. The neighborhood has attracted artists, foreign expats, and many famous people. In the sixties and seventies, the American musicians/composers Frederic Rzewski and Richard Teitelbaum , of the group Musica Elettronica Viva , lived in Via della Luce. Sergio Leone , the director of Spaghetti Westerns , grew up in Viale Glorioso (there

5382-430: The Capitoline and expanding to the Forum Boarium located between the Capitoline and Aventine Hills . The Romans themselves had a founding myth , attributing their city to Romulus and Remus , offspring of Mars and a princess of the mythical city of Alba Longa . The sons, sentenced to death, were rescued by a wolf and returned to restore the Alban king and found a city. After a dispute, Romulus killed Remus and became

5499-420: The Carthaginian intercession, Messana asked Rome to expel the Carthaginians. Rome entered this war because Syracuse and Messana were too close to the newly conquered Greek cities of Southern Italy and Carthage was now able to make an offensive through Roman territory; along with this, Rome could extend its domain over Sicily . Carthage was a maritime power, and the Roman lack of ships and naval experience made

5616-427: The Eastern part of the Roman territories. However, Marius's partisans managed his installation to the military command, defying Sulla and the Senate . To consolidate his own power, Sulla conducted a surprising and illegal action: he marched to Rome with his legions, killing all those who showed support to Marius's cause. In the following year, 87 BC, Marius, who had fled at Sulla's march, returned to Rome while Sulla

5733-399: The Elder , wife of Germanicus . After her death, the Horti passed to her son Caligula , who had a hippodrome built there (the Circus Gaianus ). To mark its spina , Caligula erected in the circus an Egyptian obelisk (the only one always standing, among the numerous obelisks in Rome); it was later moved in 1586 by Pope Sixtus V (r. 1590–95) to St. Peter's Square. The circus and

5850-413: The Empire in 165–180 AD. From Nerva to Marcus Aurelius, the empire achieved an unprecedented status. The powerful influence of laws and manners had gradually cemented the union of the provinces. All the citizens enjoyed and abused the advantages of wealth. The image of a free constitution was preserved with decent reverence. The Roman senate appeared to possess the sovereign authority, and devolved on

5967-463: The Flavian period was the siege and destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD by Titus . The destruction of the city was the culmination of the Roman campaign in Judea following the Jewish uprising of 66 AD. The Second Temple was completely demolished, after which Titus' soldiers proclaimed him imperator in honour of the victory. Jerusalem was sacked and much of the population killed or dispersed. Josephus claims that 1,100,000 people were killed during

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6084-444: The Italian Alps , causing panic among Rome's Italian allies. The best way found to defeat Hannibal's purpose of causing the Italians to abandon Rome was to delay the Carthaginians with a guerrilla war of attrition, a strategy propounded by Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus . Hannibal's invasion lasted over 16 years, ravaging Italy, but ultimately Carthage was defeated in the decisive Battle of Zama in October 202 BC. More than

6201-411: The Mediterranean, Italy maintained a special status which made it domina provinciarum ("ruler of the provinces"), and – especially in relation to the first centuries of imperial stability – rectrix mundi ("governor of the world") and omnium terrarum parens ("parent of all lands"). The Flavians were the second dynasty to rule Rome. By 68 AD, the year of Nero's death, there

6318-406: The Middle East, including Anatolia , Levant , and parts of Mesopotamia and Arabia . That empire was among the largest empires in the ancient world, covering around 5 million square kilometres (1.9 million square miles) in AD 117, with an estimated 50 to 90 million inhabitants, roughly 20% of the world's population at the time. The Roman state evolved from an elective monarchy to

6435-416: The Senate, they were severely restricted in political power. The Senate squabbled perpetually, repeatedly blocked important land reforms and refused to give the equestrian class a larger say in the government. Violent gangs of the urban unemployed, controlled by rival Senators, intimidated the electorate through violence. The situation came to a head in the late 2nd century BC under the Gracchi brothers,

6552-427: The XIV and was called Trans Tiberim . Since the end of the Roman Republic the quarter was also the center of an important Jewish community, which lived there until the end of the Middle Ages. Rome's oldest remaining synagogue, though not used as such any longer, is found in the district. The building was constructed in 980, and became a synagogue in 1073 through the efforts of lexicographer Nathan ben Yechiel. Within

6669-418: The Younger , also flowed into the imperial property; in this area Hadrian (r. 117–138) let later build his Mausoleum . Further away from the river, Trajan had a Naumachia built, a facility intended to host naval battles. The Ager Vaticanus was serviced by two roads: the via Triumphalis and the via Cornelia . Both roads are well known from the ancient authors, but their real paths are unknown. There

6786-500: The aid of Pyrrhus of Epirus in 281 BC, but this effort failed as well. The Romans secured their conquests by founding Roman colonies in strategic areas, thereby establishing stable control over the region. In the 3rd century BC Rome faced a new and formidable opponent: Carthage , the other major power in the Western Mediterranean. The First Punic War began in 264 BC, when the city of Messana asked for Carthage's help in their conflicts with Hiero II of Syracuse . After

6903-409: The ancient Roman period, the inhabitants of Trastevere, called Trasteverini , developed a culture of their own. In 1744 Benedict XIV modified the borders of the rioni , giving Trastevere its modern limits. Nowadays, Trastevere maintains its character thanks to its narrow cobbled streets lined by ancient houses. At night, natives and tourists alike flock to its many pubs and restaurants, but much of

7020-427: The architect Apollodorus of Damascus . He remodelled the Pantheon and extended the Circus Maximus . When Parthia appointed a king for Armenia without consulting Rome, Trajan declared war on Parthia and deposed the king of Armenia. In 115 he took the Northern Mesopotamian cities of Nisibis and Batnae , organised a province of Mesopotamia (116), and issued coins that claimed Armenia and Mesopotamia were under

7137-417: The area across the Tiber belonged to the Etruscans : the Romans named it Ripa Etrusca (Etruscan bank). Rome conquered it to gain control of and access to the river from both banks, but was not interested in building on that side of the river. In fact, the only connection between Trastevere and the rest of the city was a small wooden bridge called the Pons Sublicius (English: 'bridge on wooden piles'). By

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7254-415: The arts and sciences, and bestowed honours and financial rewards upon the teachers of rhetoric and philosophy . On becoming emperor, Antoninus made few initial changes, leaving intact as far as possible the arrangements instituted by his predecessor. Antoninus expanded Roman Britannia by invading what is now southern Scotland and building the Antonine Wall . He also continued Hadrian's policy of humanising

7371-438: The authority of the Roman people. In that same year, he captured Seleucia and the Parthian capital Ctesiphon (near modern Baghdad ). After defeating a Parthian revolt and a Jewish revolt , he withdrew due to health issues, and in 117, he died of edema . Trajan's successor Hadrian withdrew all the troops stationed in Parthia, Armenia and Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq ), abandoning Trajan's conquests. Hadrian's army crushed

7488-531: The building there was also a mikveh . At the base of the central column Hebrew writing is still visible. Its use as a synagogue ended when the Jews were forced to move to the Roman ghetto on the other side of the Tiber river in the mid-16th century. It is now used commercially, and can be found at 14, Vicolo dell’Atleta. With the wealth of the Imperial Age , several important figures decided to build their villae in Trastevere, including Clodia , ( Catullus ' "friend") and Julius Caesar (his garden villa,

7605-537: The changes to the calendar promoted by Caesar , and the month of August is named after him. Augustus brought a peaceful and thriving era to Rome, known as Pax Augusta or Pax Romana . Augustus died in 14 AD, but the empire's glory continued after his era. The Julio-Claudians continued to rule Rome after Augustus' death and remained in power until the death of Nero in 68 AD. Influenced by his wife, Livia Drusilla , Augustus appointed her son from another marriage, Tiberius , as his heir. The Senate agreed with

7722-418: The character Aeneas , a common culture is attested to archaeologically. Attested to reciprocal rights of marriage and citizenship between Latin cities—the Jus Latii —along with shared religious festivals, further indicate a shared culture. By the end of the 6th century, most of this area had become dominated by the Romans. By the end of the sixth century, Rome and many of its Italian neighbours entered

7839-413: The city against the Germanic tribes. In the Middle Ages Trastevere had narrow, winding, irregular streets; moreover, because of the mignani (structures on the front of buildings) there was no space for carriages to pass. At the end of the 15th century these mignani were removed. Nevertheless, Trastevere remained a maze of narrow streets. There was a strong contrast between the large, opulent houses of

7956-409: The city's sole founder. The area of his initial settlement on the Palatine Hill was later known as Roma Quadrata ("Square Rome"). The story dates at least to the third century BC, and the later Roman antiquarian Marcus Terentius Varro placed the city's foundation to 753 BC. Another legend, recorded by Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus , says that Prince Aeneas led a group of Trojans on

8073-410: The confluence of the Cremera creek. About the etymology of Vātī̆cānus there are several hypotheses: according to Barthold Georg Niebuhr , the toponym perhaps refers to an archaic Etruscan settlement called Vaticum ; Varro derives the name from a childbirth deity named Vaticanus or Vagitanus , the god of the vagiti ("wailings"), since va was supposed to be the first syllable pronounced by

8190-785: The death of Tiberius, and, with belated support from the senators, proclaimed his uncle Claudius as the new emperor. Claudius was not as authoritarian as Tiberius and Caligula. Claudius conquered Lycia and Thrace ; his most important deed was the beginning of the conquest of Britannia . Claudius was poisoned by his wife, Agrippina the Younger in 54 AD. His heir was Nero , son of Agrippina and her former husband, since Claudius' son Britannicus had not reached manhood upon his father's death. Nero sent his general, Suetonius Paulinus , to invade modern-day Wales , where he encountered stiff resistance. The Celts there were independent, tough, resistant to tax collectors, and fought Paulinus as he battled his way across from east to west. It took him

8307-406: The destruction of republican values, but on the other hand, they boosted Rome's status as the central power in the Mediterranean region. While Caligula and Nero are usually remembered in popular culture as dysfunctional emperors, Augustus and Claudius are remembered as successful in politics and the military. This dynasty instituted imperial tradition in Rome and frustrated any attempt to reestablish

8424-491: The east, the rione borders with Ponte (R. V), Regola (R. VII) and Ripa (R. XII): the border is marked by the stretch of the Tiber between Ponte Principe Amedeo and Ponte Sublicio . To the south, Trastevere borders with Quartiere Portuense (Q. XI), from which is separated by a short stretch of the Aurelian Walls beside Piazza di Porta Portese ; as well as with Quartiere Aurelio (Q. XIII), from which

8541-592: The edict as a fundamental turning point, after which Rome was "effectively a new state masquerading under an old name". Macrinus conspired to have Caracalla assassinated by one of his soldiers during a pilgrimage to the Temple of the Moon in Carrhae, in 217 AD. Macrinus assumed power, but soon removed himself from Rome to the east and Antioch. His brief reign ended in 218, when the youngster Bassianus, high priest of

8658-470: The emperors all the executive powers of government. Gibbon declared the rule of these "Five Good Emperors" the golden era of the Empire. During this time, Rome reached its greatest territorial extent. Commodus , son of Marcus Aurelius, became emperor after his father's death. He is not counted as one of the Five Good Emperors, due to his direct kinship with the latter emperor; in addition, he

8775-526: The end of the Triumvirate, Antony was living in Ptolemaic Egypt , ruled by his lover, Cleopatra VII . Antony's affair with Cleopatra was seen as an act of treason, since she was queen of another country. Additionally, Antony adopted a lifestyle considered too extravagant and Hellenistic for a Roman statesman. Following Antony's Donations of Alexandria , which gave to Cleopatra the title of " Queen of Kings ", and to Antony's and Cleopatra's children

8892-492: The field. However, he became ill and died in 211 AD, at the age of 65. Upon the death of Severus, his sons Caracalla and Geta were made emperors. Caracalla had his brother, a youth, assassinated in his mother's arms, and may have murdered 20,000 of Geta's followers. Like his father, Caracalla was warlike. He continued Severus' policy and gained respect from the legions. Knowing that the citizens of Alexandria disliked him and were denigrating his character, Caracalla served

9009-660: The first centuries of Rome, the Ager Vaticanus was the boundary between Rome and the powerful Etruscan city of Veii . After the Roman conquest of the rival city in 396 BC, the Centuriate Assembly kept the tradition of raising an ensign on the summit of the Janiculum hill, to signal a possible Etruscan raid. The hill was known as Antipolis ("anti-city" in Greek), in contrast with the Capitoline hill . By

9126-672: The first graves in the Esquiline Hill 's necropolis, along with a clay and timber wall on the bottom of the Palatine Hill dating to the middle of the 8th century BC. Starting from c.  650 BC , the Romans started to drain the valley between the Capitoline and Palatine Hills, where today sits the Roman Forum . By the sixth century BC, the Romans were constructing the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on

9243-521: The first of his seven consulships (an unprecedented number) in 107 BC by arguing that his former patron Quintus Caecilius Metellus Numidicus was not able to defeat and capture the Numidian king Jugurtha . Marius then started his military reform: in his recruitment to fight Jugurtha, he levied the very poor (an innovation), and many landless men entered the army. Marius was elected for five consecutive consulships from 104 to 100 BC, as Rome needed

9360-576: The first persecutor of Christians and for the Great Fire of Rome , rumoured to have been started by the emperor himself. A conspiracy against Nero in 65 AD under Calpurnius Piso failed, but in 68 AD the armies under Julius Vindex in Gaul and Servius Sulpicius Galba in modern-day Spain revolted. Deserted by the Praetorian Guards and condemned to death by the senate, Nero killed himself. As Roman provinces were being established throughout

9477-471: The first strike but could not withstand the attack of Scipio Aemilianus , who entirely destroyed the city, enslaved all the citizens and gained control of that region, which became the province of Africa . All these wars resulted in Rome's first overseas conquests (Sicily, Hispania and Africa) and the rise of Rome as a significant imperial power. After defeating the Macedonian and Seleucid Empires in

9594-474: The frontier legions to save them. The legions of three frontier provinces— Britannia , Pannonia Superior , and Syria —resented being excluded from the " donative " and replied by declaring their individual generals to be emperor. Lucius Septimius Severus Geta, the Pannonian commander, bribed the opposing forces, pardoned the Praetorian Guards and installed himself as emperor. He and his successors governed with

9711-477: The imperial dignity. Pertinax, a member of the senate who had been one of Marcus Aurelius's right-hand men, was the choice of Laetus, and he ruled vigorously and judiciously. Laetus soon became jealous and instigated Pertinax's murder by the Praetorian Guard, who then auctioned the empire to the highest bidder, Didius Julianus, for 25,000 sesterces per man. The people of Rome were appalled and appealed to

9828-433: The increased reliance on foreign slaves and the growth of latifundia reduced the availability of paid work. Income from war booty, mercantilism in the new provinces, and tax farming created new economic opportunities for the wealthy, forming a new class of merchants, called the equestrians . The lex Claudia forbade members of the Senate from engaging in commerce, so while the equestrians could theoretically join

9945-550: The laws of the Duodecim Tabulae , insolvent debtors could be sold into slavery, but only on the right bank of the Tiber. After Cincinnatus paid a large punitive fine for his son, it was recorded that he retired "like an exiled man" to his property in the Ager Vaticanus , although the plain was already Roman territory. The toponym Ager Vaticanus is attested until the 1st century AD: afterwards, another toponym appeared, Vaticanus , denoting an area much more restricted:

10062-798: The laws. He died in 161 AD. Marcus Aurelius , known as the Philosopher, was the last of the Five Good Emperors . He was a stoic philosopher and wrote the Meditations . He defeated barbarian tribes in the Marcomannic Wars as well as the Parthian Empire . His co-emperor, Lucius Verus , died in 169 AD, probably from the Antonine Plague , a pandemic that killed nearly five million people through

10179-693: The legions' support. The changes on coinage and military expenditures were the root of the financial crisis that marked the Crisis of the Third Century . Severus was enthroned after invading Rome and having Didius Julianus killed. Severus attempted to revive totalitarianism and, addressing the Roman people and Senate, praised the severity and cruelty of Marius and Sulla, which worried the senators. When Parthia invaded Roman territory, Severus successfully waged war against that country. Notwithstanding this military success, Severus failed in invading Hatra ,

10296-450: The nearby large cylindrical monument with overlapping tower called Terebinthus Neronis ; both burials were often considered in the Middle Ages as the place of Peter's martyrdom. Traces of both monuments were found during the construction of the new buildings along Via della Conciliazione. Among the tombs, noteworthy is the one containing the sarcophagus of the young Crepereia Tryphaena ; this contained, together with her funeral equipment,

10413-645: The original character of Trastevere remains. The area is also home to several foreign academic institutions including The American University of Rome and John Cabot University (both of which are private American universities), the American Academy in Rome , the Rome campus of the Thomas More College of Liberal Arts , the Canadian University of Waterloo School of Architecture (between the months of September and December), and

10530-549: The path to the victory a long and difficult one for the Roman Republic . Despite this, after more than 20 years of war, Rome defeated Carthage and a peace treaty was signed. Among the reasons for the Second Punic War was the subsequent war reparations Carthage acquiesced to at the end of the First Punic War. The war began with the audacious invasion of Hispania by Hannibal , who marched through Hispania to

10647-770: The populace and the legions. Augustus intended to extend the Roman Empire to the whole known world, and in his reign, Rome conquered Cantabria , Aquitania , Raetia , Dalmatia , Illyricum and Pannonia . Under Augustus' reign, Roman literature grew steadily in what is known as the Golden Age of Latin Literature . Poets like Virgil , Horace , Ovid and Rufus developed a rich literature, and were close friends of Augustus. Along with Maecenas , he sponsored patriotic poems, such as Virgil's epic Aeneid and historiographical works like those of Livy . Augustus continued

10764-400: The populace. Emperors were no longer men linked with nobility; they usually were born in lower-classes of distant parts of the Empire. These men rose to prominence through military ranks, and became emperors through civil wars. Trastevere Its coat of arms depicts a golden head of a lion on a red background, the meaning of which is uncertain. In Rome 's Regal period (753–509 BC),

10881-515: The public spaces of Rome, but on areas lying to the margins of the urban area and belonging to the imperial state property. Thus began the construction, in the 4th century, of the first basilica dedicated to St. Peter, established according to Christian usage above what tradition claims is his tomb (the confessio ), and founded on the north side of the Gaianum along the Via Cornelia. Part of

10998-400: The regal titles to the newly conquered Eastern territories, war between Octavian and Antony broke out . Octavian annihilated Egyptian forces in the Battle of Actium in 31 BC. Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide . Now Egypt was conquered by the Roman Empire. In 27 BC and at the age of 36, Octavian was the sole Roman leader. In that year, he took the name Augustus . That event

11115-551: The revitalised Persia and also the Germanic peoples , who invaded Gaul. His losses generated dissatisfaction among his soldiers, and some of them murdered him during his Germanic campaign in 235 AD. A disastrous scenario emerged after the death of Alexander Severus : the Roman state was plagued by civil wars, external invasions , political chaos, pandemics and economic depression . The old Roman values had fallen, and Mithraism and Christianity had begun to spread through

11232-528: The river, that marks the eastern border of the borough, the area is delimited to the west and to the south by the Janiculum walls , and to the north by the Galleria Principe Amedeo di Savoia-Aosta tunnel. To the north, Trastevere borders with Borgo (R. XIV), whose border is defined by a portion of the walls of Urban VIII , beside Rampa del Sangallo and Viale delle Mura Aurelie, by Piazza della Rovere and by Ponte Principe Amedeo . To

11349-753: The siege, of whom a majority were Jewish. 97,000 were captured and enslaved , including Simon bar Giora and John of Giscala . Many fled to areas around the Mediterranean. Vespasian was a general under Claudius and Nero and fought as a commander in the First Jewish-Roman War . Following the turmoil of the Year of the Four Emperors , in 69 AD, four emperors were enthroned in turn: Galba , Otho , Vitellius , and, lastly, Vespasian, who crushed Vitellius' forces and became emperor. He reconstructed many buildings which were uncompleted, like

11466-497: The son of the deified. In the same year, Octavian and Antony defeated both Caesar's assassins and the leaders of the Liberatores , Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus , in the Battle of Philippi . The Second Triumvirate was marked by the proscriptions of many senators and equites : after a revolt led by Antony's brother Lucius Antonius , more than 300 senators and equites involved were executed, although Lucius

11583-520: The succession, and granted to Tiberius the same titles and honours once granted to Augustus: the title of princeps and Pater patriae , and the Civic Crown . However, Tiberius was not an enthusiast for political affairs: after agreement with the Senate, he retired to Capri in 26 AD, and left control of the city of Rome in the hands of the praetorian prefect Sejanus (until 31 AD) and Macro (from 31 to 37 AD). Tiberius died (or

11700-429: The support of the people) and optimates (the "best", who wanted to maintain exclusive aristocratic control). Sulla overthrew all populist leaders and his constitutional reforms removed powers (such as those of the tribune of the plebs ) that had supported populist approaches. Meanwhile, social and economic stresses continued to build; Rome had become a metropolis with a super-rich aristocracy, debt-ridden aspirants, and

11817-485: The supreme deity in Roman religion . He was murdered following a plot within his own household. Following Domitian's murder, the Senate rapidly appointed Nerva as Emperor. Nerva had noble ancestry, and he had served as an advisor to Nero and the Flavians. His rule restored many of the traditional liberties of Rome's upper classes, which Domitian had over-ridden. The Nerva–Antonine dynasty from 96 AD to 192 AD included

11934-406: The surrounding necropolis was submerged under the construction of the church, but partly re-emerged during the research of the tomb of Peter conducted in the 1940s–1950s. The Ager Vaticanus was connected to Rome through two bridges: Ancient Rome In modern historiography , ancient Rome is the Roman civilisation from the founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to

12051-448: The temple of the Sun at Emesa, and supposedly illegitimate son of Caracalla, was declared Emperor by the disaffected soldiers of Macrinus. He adopted the name of Antoninus but history has named him after his Sun god Elagabalus , represented on Earth in the form of a large black stone. An incompetent and lascivious ruler, Elagabalus offended all but his favourites. Cassius Dio , Herodian and

12168-505: The time of the Republic c.  509 BC, the number of sailors and fishermen making a living from the river had increased, and many had taken up residence in Trastevere. Immigrants from the East also settled there, mainly Jews and Syrians . The area began to be considered part of the city under Augustus , who divided Rome into 14 regions ( regiones in Latin); modern Trastevere was

12285-464: The tribes of modern-day East Anglia staged a revolt led by queen Boadicea of the Iceni . The rebels sacked and burned Camulodunum , Londinium and Verulamium (modern-day Colchester , London and St Albans respectively) before they were crushed by Paulinus . Boadicea, like Cleopatra before her, committed suicide to avoid the disgrace of being paraded in triumph in Rome. Nero is widely known as

12402-490: The tribes of modern-day Scotland. Hadrian promoted culture, especially the Greek. He forbade torture and humanised the laws. His many building projects included aqueducts, baths, libraries and theatres; additionally, he travelled nearly every province in the Empire to review military and infrastructural conditions. Following Hadrian's death in 138 AD, his successor Antoninus Pius built temples, theatres, and mausoleums, promoted

12519-410: The upper classes and the small, dilapidated houses of the poor. The streets had no pavement until the time of Sixtus IV at the end of the 15th century. At first bricks were used, but these were later replaced by sampietrini (cobble stones), which were more suitable for carriages. Thanks to its partial isolation (it was "beyond the Tiber") and to the fact that its population had been multicultural since

12636-575: The weighing noticed that the Gauls were using false scales. The Romans then took up arms and defeated the Gauls. Their victorious general Camillus remarked "With iron, not with gold, Rome buys her freedom." The Romans gradually subdued the other peoples on the Italian peninsula, including the Etruscans . The last threat to Roman hegemony in Italy came when Tarentum , a major Greek colony, enlisted

12753-657: Was Josephus' sponsor and Pliny dedicated his Naturalis Historia to Titus, son of Vespasian. Vespasian sent legions to defend the eastern frontier in Cappadocia , extended the occupation in Britannia (modern-day England, Wales and southern Scotland ) and reformed the tax system. He died in 79 AD. Titus became emperor in 79. He finished the Flavian Amphitheater, using war spoils from the First Jewish-Roman War, and hosted victory games that lasted for

12870-476: Was appointed to command the army together with Lucius Julius Caesar and Lucius Cornelius Sulla . By the end of the Social War, Marius and Sulla were the premier military men in Rome and their partisans were in conflict, both sides jostling for power. In 88 BC, Sulla was elected for his first consulship and his first assignment was to defeat Mithridates VI of Pontus , whose intentions were to conquer

12987-506: Was campaigning in Greece. He seized power along with the consul Lucius Cornelius Cinna and killed the other consul, Gnaeus Octavius , achieving his seventh consulship. Marius and Cinna revenged their partisans by conducting a massacre. Marius died in 86 BC, due to age and poor health, just a few months after seizing power. Cinna exercised absolute power until his death in 84 BC. After returning from his Eastern campaigns, Sulla had

13104-497: Was killed) in 37 AD. The male line of the Julio-Claudians was limited to Tiberius' nephew Claudius , his grandson Tiberius Gemellus and his grand-nephew Caligula . As Gemellus was still a child, Caligula was chosen to rule the empire. He was a popular leader in the first half of his reign, but became a crude and insane tyrant in his years controlling government. The Praetorian Guard murdered Caligula four years after

13221-532: Was militarily passive. Cassius Dio identifies his reign as the beginning of Roman decadence : "(Rome has transformed) from a kingdom of gold to one of iron and rust." Commodus was killed by a conspiracy involving Quintus Aemilius Laetus and his wife Marcia in late 192 AD. The following year is known as the Year of the Five Emperors , during which Helvius Pertinax , Didius Julianus , Pescennius Niger , Clodius Albinus and Septimius Severus held

13338-570: Was no chance of a return to the Roman Republic , and so a new emperor had to arise. After the turmoil in the Year of the Four Emperors , Titus Flavius Vespasianus (anglicised as Vespasian) took control of the empire and established a new dynasty. Under the Flavians, Rome continued its expansion, and the state remained secure. Under Trajan, the Roman Empire reached the peak of its territorial expansion. Rome's dominion now spanned 5.0 million square kilometres (1.9 million square miles). The most significant military campaign undertaken during

13455-554: Was now pre-eminent over Rome: in five years he held four consulships, two ordinary dictatorships, and two special dictatorships, one for perpetuity. He was murdered in 44 BC, on the Ides of March by the Liberatores . Caesar's assassination caused political and social turmoil in Rome; the city was ruled by his friend and colleague, Marcus Antonius . Soon afterward, Octavius , whom Caesar adopted through his will, arrived in Rome. Octavian (historians regard Octavius as Octavian due to

13572-557: Was spared. The Triumvirate divided the Empire among the triumvirs: Lepidus was given charge of Africa , Antony, the eastern provinces, and Octavian remained in Italia and controlled Hispania and Gaul . The Second Triumvirate expired in 38 BC but was renewed for five more years. However, the relationship between Octavian and Antony had deteriorated, and Lepidus was forced to retire in 36 BC after betraying Octavian in Sicily . By

13689-482: Was succeeded by the general Trajan . Trajan is credited with the restoration of traditional privileges and rights of commoner and senatorial classes, which later Roman historians claim to have been eroded during Domitian's autocracy. Trajan fought three Dacian wars , winning territories roughly equivalent to modern-day Romania and Moldova . He undertook an ambitious public building program in Rome, including Trajan's Forum , Trajan's Market and Trajan's Column , with

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